Coworking space Raleigh Founded expanded earlier this year to create Cary Founded. I spoke with location director Rebekah Gregg about the new space and the motivations that brought them to the heart of downtown Cary.
Let’s start with how Cary got a Founded location. Can you tell us that story?
Sure. So we started Raleigh Founded more than 10 years ago. We had four entrepreneurs who got together and recognized that there was a need for a collaborative space for entrepreneurs. And from there we expanded and now have four locations in Raleigh.
The Cary Chamber reached out to us about a year and a half ago and asked us if we would be interested in opening a new space here. They wanted something that felt more locally owned and more integrated into the community.
And there is a lot of small business and entrepreneurship happening in Cary. A lot of the entrepreneurs in our Raleigh spaces had been commuting from Cary — it’s such a great place to live. So we really wanted to offer some space for those members and support this community.
You’ve moved into the brand-new Rogers West building in downtown Cary. Why was this space so appealing to the Founded team?
Coming into this new building, we really got to paint the canvas of what we wanted the space to be. All four Raleigh Founded locations have certain things that we wanted to pull from. So, for instance, the Gateway location has a big classroom space, which is great for us. We’ve seen the big suites at other properties are popular, so we wanted those here. We also saw a lot of people really desiring more small spaces, like one- to two-person offices, so we have more of those. And then we have the phone booths (single-user meeting space), the wellness room, and other features that are popular in the other Raleigh Founded locations.
And downtown Cary’s growing so fast. You have so many new apartments opening up, so many new businesses. We really wanted to be here at the forefront of all that growth.
What do you think makes coworking spaces so valuable for local businesses and the community?
Outside of coworking spaces, you don’t see many opportunities for these business owners to collide every single day. In our spaces, we’ve had so many people who have ended up working together on projects, people who would have never met if our space didn’t exist. So I think we’re really just providing the common ground for all these entrepreneurs and people working on totally different ventures to create magic.
What are some of your favorite spaces at the Cary location?
We have larger suites that are just really flexible. They’re great for a big company that might be downsizing or shifting to a hybrid schedule, or for a smaller company that’s growing. They have two private executive offices, a conference table area, and tons of windows, so the views of Chatham Street are amazing.
And I love the communal space: the coworking space, conference rooms, training, and event space — all the things you want for your staff to stay engaged and keep a good work culture going.
What are some of your upcoming events and activities that people should know about?
One of our members will be doing a Lunch and Learn coming up on September 27 from noon to 1 p.m. We’re also going to have a $5 Coworking Week coming up October 14-18 with a Wellness Day, more training, and networking events for the community!
For more on the Cary Founded location and how local businesses and entrepreneurs can get involved in the coworking community, please reach out to Rebekah and the Founded team at info@caryfounded.com.
